Horror video games are currently experiencing something of a renaissance. The astounding popularity of the recent “Amnesia” and “Five Nights at Freddy’s” series are proof of that. Even so, the current popularity of the genre has led to quite a few empty cash-grab games that rely on cheap jump-scares to cause fear. However, a recent creation, “The Static Speaks My Name” by independent developer Jesse Barksdale, proves to be something of an antithesis to the typical modern horror game, but it is no less of a surreal, unnerving experience.
Before continuing, be advised “The Static Speaks My Name” contains some highly disturbing imagery, particularly related to suicide.
The game puts the player in control of a man obsessed with a particular painting. He awakes in the middle of the night, and the player is then provided with a series of objectives, gradually getting more and more disturbing.
The game is very short; it can be completed start to finish in about 10 minutes. However, those 10 minutes are full of emotional impact that should leave the player disturbed in a way that only a good piece of horror media can deliver.
The game can be obtained using the ‘pay-what-you-want’ model (this includes free) from thewhalehusband.itch.io/thestatic
